"The Supreme Lord said:
This body, O son of Kunti, is called the field, and one who knows this body is
called the knower of the field." (Bg. 13.2)

The Supreme personality of
Godhead, Krsna, is instructing Arjuna about the knowledge of ksetra and
ksetrajna. Ksetra refers to the field, which is the body, and ksetrajna refers
to the knower of the field, who is the individual soul. If land is to be
cultivated, there must be some cultivator, and if this body, which is likened
unto a field, is to be cultivated, there must be a proprietor who can cultivate
it. Now we have these material bodies, and it is our duty to cultivate them
properly. That cultivation is called akarma, or work. A person may come to our
place with a hoe to cultivate land, or he may come to simply drink coffee or
tea. We have been given this particular type of body to cultivate and to attain
required sense objects according to our desires. This body is a gift from God.
God is very kind, and if someone wants something from Him, He allows it.
"All right," He says. "Take this." His relationship to us is
just like the relationship of a father to a son. The son may insist upon getting
something from the father, and the father may try to convince him that what he
wants is not for his good, saying, "My dear son, don`t touch this. This is
not good for you." But when the boy insists upon it, the father will allow
him to have it. The affectionate father gives the son just what he wants.
Similarly, the Supreme Father gives His sons and daughters just what they want.
It is stated in Bhagavad-gita that all beings, in all species of life, are his
children.

"It should be understood
that all species of life, O son of Kunti, are made possible by birth in this
material nature, and that I am the seed-giving Father." (Bg. 14.4)

In this material world, the
mother, prakrti, which is material nature, supplies us with the body, and the
Supreme Father impregnates this matter with living souls. There is an erroneous
theory current that only human beings have souls and that other living entities
do not, but we understand from Vedic authority that there are 8,400,000 species
of bodies, including plants and trees, and that they all have souls, otherwise
they would not be able to develop and grow. In this verse Sri Krsna claims that
all living entities, regardless of the forms they take in this material world,
are his sons, and that they are related to Him as a son is related to his
father.

This Krsna consciousness is
especially meant for understanding the position of the soul and its relationship
with God.

"O scion of Bharata, you
should understand that I am also the knower in all bodies, and to understand
this body and its owner is called knowledge. That is My opinion." (Bg.
13.3)

If we meditate upon this body
and study whether or not we are actually the body, we will come to the
conclusion that we are ksetrajna, the knower of the body but not the body. If we
study our finger and consider whether or not we are the finger, we will come to
the conclusion that we are not the finger or any other part of the body, but
that the finger, the arms, the legs, the head, etc. are our fingers, arms, legs,
etc. In this way we can come to the conclusion that we are not these bodies but
that the bodies belong to us. Therefore we say, "This is my body."
Unfortunately people in this modern civilization never stop to inquire what they
are or who they are. They are simply laboring hard, working hard all day in an
office or factory, under the impression that, "I am this body." And if
we ask people who they are, they reply, "I am Hindu, I am Moslem, I am
Swedish, I am American, I am Christian, etc." These are various
identifications or designations of the body, but the fact is that we are not
these bodies. The body is simply the field of our activities. We are no more the
body than the cultivator of a field is the field.

There are different kinds of
bodies and different activities in accordance to the different types of bodies.
A dog enjoys one kind of activity, a cat enjoys another, and a human enjoys
another. There are differences of activity due to differences of body. When we
come to the platform of truth, however, and understand that we are not these
bodies, then our activities change from material activities to spiritual
activities. As long as we are operating under the bodily conception of life, our
activities are material, but as soon as we understand, "I do not belong to
this body, aham brahmasmi, I am spirit soul," our activities will be in
accordance to that realization, that is to say that they will cease to be
motivated from the material or bodily platform. Knowledge of our proper identity
as separate from the body is real knowledge, but this knowledge is denied as
long as we cling to bodily identification.

In the scriptures it is said
that as long as we are in this bodily conception of life, all our activities
will be defeated. A child is born into ignorance, and if as he grows older he
remains under the bodily conception of life, he lives in darkness. His position
is that of a sudra. In the Vedic literatures we find that in this age everyone
is born a sudra; therefore everyone requires to be educated as to his real
identity. If, however, we remain satisfied with our birth by our father and
mother, we will remain in our condition as sudra. We have to rise to the
brahminical platform by following the purificatory processes.

As mentioned before, there
are four basic characteristics of an impure life--illicit sex, intoxication,
meat-eating and gambling. According to the Vedic principles, sex should not be
indulged in outside of marriage. In human society there is therefore a system of
marriage which distinguishes us from the cats and dogs. Whether we are Hindu,
Moslem, or Christian, we acknowledge the system of marriage. The purpose of this
system is to avoid illicit sex. According to the Vedic system, intoxication is
also discouraged; nor is meat-eating advocated, for human beings should be
nonviolent. We have been given sufficient grains, fruits, milk, and vegetables,
and there is no necessity to kill poor animals. Some people argue that if we do
not eat meat we will be undernourished, but we can see that the students of this
Krsna consciousness movement have given up meat and are very healthy, whereas
people who are eating meat are still, despite their meat-eating, subject to so
many diseases and unhealthy conditions. Gambling is also discouraged because it
simply agitates the mind.

This then is the purificatory
process by which one can become a brahmana. This path is open to everyone. A
brahmana is one who is truthful and pure, tolerant and simple, full of knowledge
and faith in God. He can control his mind and his senses also. At the present
moment there is a great necessity for brahmanas, because almost everyone is a
sudra, for almost everyone is wholly engaged in maintaining the body, eating,
sleeping, mating and defending--all symptoms of animals and sudras.

Society cannot be peaceful
unless there are four divisions of human beings functioning in harmony with one
another. These four divisions are comprised of brahmanas, ksatriyas, vaisyas and
sudras. These are discussed by Krsna in Bhagavad-gita in this way:

"According to the three
modes of material nature and the work ascribed to them, the four divisions of
human society were created by Me. And, although I am the creator of this system,
you should know that I am yet the non-doer, being unchangeable." (Bg. 4.13)

These four divisions of men
in human society are natural, not artificial, because in the material world
everything is operating under the influence of the three modes of material
nature--goodness, passion and ignorance. As long as we are in the material
world, it is not possible to classify everyone in the same category because each
and every person is working under the influence of the modes of material nature.
However, when we transcend the material plane, there is oneness. At that time,
all the divisions fall apart. The question is therefore how to transcend the
modes of material nature, and that transcendence is the very process of Krsna
consciousness. As soon as we become situated in Krsna consciousness, we become
transcendental to the modes of material nature.

"One who engages in full
devotional service, who does not fall down in any circumstance, at once
transcends the modes of material nature, and thus comes to the level of
Brahman." (Bg. 14.26)

Thus one who is engaged in
Krsna conscious activity is at once elevated to the transcendental position. By
nature we are not matter but Brahman (aham brahmasmi). The philosophy of
Sankaracarya is mainly based on the principle that we should not think that we
are products of this material nature. It is by some unfortunate accident that we
are in contact with material nature. Actually our nature is that of spirit,
Brahman, and that nature has to be invoked. This material life is a diseased
condition; when we are situated in Brahman, we are in our healthy condition.
That healthy Brahman condition is immediately attained as soon as we engage
ourselves one hundred percent in Krsna consciousness.

When we transcend material
nature through the rendering of service unto Krsna, what is our status? Do we
become zero? Some philosophies maintain that after liberation from material
life, after the nirvana of this material body, we become zero, void. That is a
dangerous theory. By nature the living entity is not attracted to zero. We may
be diseased and suffering from so many elements, but if our doctor comes and
says, "Let me finish your ailments by killing you," we will
immediately say, "No, no! Better let me suffer from the disease." We
do not want to be killed just to end our miseries. Thus the theory that after
material life there is void is not at all attractive. Nor is it a fact. We are
sac-cid-ananda-vigraha, eternal, blissful and full of knowledge, and part and
parcel of the Supreme. The Supreme Lord is sac-cid-ananda-vigraha, and we are
qualitatively one with Him. Although very small, a drop of seawater is as salty
as the sea, and although we are but spiritual atoms, we have the same properties
as the supreme spirit whole. There is no question of being void, for as living
entities our spiritual properties are all there in infinite variegatedness. If,
however, out of the frustration of material existence we commit suicide, we do
not end our miseries. We simply create other miseries. If one attempts suicide
but does not succeed, or is somehow revived, he is subject to being punished
under state law. Similarly, the laws of nature treat suicides as criminal acts.
We are to end this material life only after finding out the true blissful life
of eternity. We should not simply be trying to end the miseries of this life
simply out of frustration, but we should engage ourselves in activities that
will raise us to spiritual life.

The four divisions of human
society were created by Sri Krsna in order to facilitate this process of
elevation. Just as a student is elevated from a lower class to a post-graduate
class, the divisions of labor (catur-varnyam) are created to elevate us from the
lowest stages of consciousness to the highest stage of Krsna consciousness. This
process is a process of cooperation. In the human body, the most important part
is the head, then the arms, the belly and the legs. Although the head is
considered to be the most important part, there is no question of neglecting the
legs or any other part. Similarly, in the divisions of human society, no one
division is important to the exclusion of the others. Of these divisions, the
brahmanas are considered to be the intellectual class, the class of teachers;
the ksatriyas are the administrative and military class; the vaisyas are the
mercantile and agricultural class; and the sudras are the common laborer class.
In a properly run society, all of these classes are required. If they cooperate
in their progress toward Krsna consciousness, there is no strife amongst them.

In the present social status,
we find that we are existing in these four divisions, but there is no
cooperation. Everyone is dissatisfied. Today there is great strife between the
capitalist class and laborer class because between them there is no compromise.
There is only friction. All this strife amongst the classes is due to lack of
Krsna consciousness. Indeed, there is not even a possibility of cooperation
unless there is Krsna consciousness. Krsna consciousness is absolutely essential
for harmonizing all facets of human society. Regardless of what class we belong
to, if we cooperate in Krsna consciousness, there will be peace in the world.

Thus Krsna consciousness is
the utmost necessity for all divisions of society. Every chapter and every
conclusion of Bhagavad-gita aim toward Krsna consciousness. Sri Krsna, who is
speaking Bhagavad-gita, is always stressing devotion to His personal Self.

"Always think of Me and
become My devotee. Worship Me and offer your homage unto Me. Thus you will come
to Me without fail. I promise you this because you are My very dear
friend." (Bg. 18.65)

Throughout Bhagavad-gita we
find this word mam stressed. Mam means "unto Me," meaning unto Krsna.
But there are many miscreants who are interpreting this mam to mean
"everyone." When I say, "Bring me a glass of water," does it
mean that I want you to bring everyone a glass of water? The individuality is
there, but by jugglery of words they interpret "me" or "I"
to mean "everyone." Consequently when Krsna says "I," the
miscreants identify this "I" with themselves. This is a gross
misinterpretation. Although Bhagavad-gita is very popular in the world, due to
this misinterpretation by mundane scholars, it has not been properly understood.

Bhagavad-gita clearly
explains that this catur-varnyam system was established by Krsna, but He is
outside of this system. When Krsna comes as an incarnation, He does not come as
a member of any social order, not as a brahmana or anything else. When Krsna
came, He came as the son of Devaki and Vasudeva. Vasudeva belonged to the royal
family and was therefore a ksatriya. As such, Krsna played the part of a
ksatriya, but this does not mean that Krsna belonged to the ksatriya class.
There are many incarnations of Krsna in many forms of life. In one incarnation
He appeared as a fish, as a member of the community of fishes, but this does not
mean that He is a fish. If we think upon seeing a fish that it belongs to
Krsna`s family, we are mistaken. Of course, from another point of view,
everything is Krsna, but Krsna is aloof from everything. This is the
transcendental nature of Krsna, and if we understand it, we will be liberated
from birth and death. Although Krsna has established the four divisions of human
society, He is not in any one of them (tasya kartaram api mam viddhy akartaram
avyayam). As soon as we understand that although Krsna was born into a ksatriya
family, He is not a ksatriya, we actually become liberated. If we think that
because Krsna acts in a particular way--as on the battlefield He gave
instructions to Arjuna to fight--He is bound by the reactions of His activities,
we are mistaken. "Works do not defile Me," Sri Krsna says (na mam
karmani limpanti). In conclusion, we must accept the fact that when Krsna comes
as one of us, He is not in actuality "one of us." He is
transcendental. This fact we must learn by submissive inquiry from authoritative
sources, such as Bhagavad-gita or a spiritual master who is fully realized in
Krsna consciousness.

Today all facets of human
society are thinking that their self-interest is in maintaining this body.
Consequently today`s society is simply a society of cats, dogs and hogs. From
Vedic literatures we can understand that we don`t have to work hard all day
simply to maintain this body. We are working very hard because we are trying to
control material nature for the purposes of sense gratification. One who can
come to understand that Krsna is the root of everything, the origin of
everything, can understand the meaning of isvarah paramah krsnah--Krsna is the
supreme controller. In the universe there are many isvaras, or controllers, but
Krsna is the supreme among all of them. Krsna consciousness gives us this
knowledge. Without it, we will remain ignorant of our real self-interest.

Modern society is in dire
need of intellectual persons or brahmanas who can broadcast real spiritual
knowledge all over the world. That is an absolute necessity for a society which
is working hard simply to exploit nature. If people try to understand this Krsna
consciousness movement scientifically and philosophically, with their best
knowledge and judgement, and try to cooperate, there will be peace all over the
world. In essence, the method is very simple. We need only chant Hare Krsna,
Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare. Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare
and follow the regulative principles mentioned before. By following the
regulative principles, we will be avoiding the four pillars of sinful life, and
by chanting the Hare Krsna mantra, we will be associating with God constantly;
thus there will be peace among all classes of men.